[mythtv-users] Comcast Cable encrypted channels

[Michael T. Dean]

On 08/03/2009 10:34 PM, Brian Wood wrote:
> On Monday 03 August 2009 20:06:41 Michael T. Dean wrote:
>   
>> On 08/03/2009 07:32 PM, Jim Goddard wrote:
>>     
>>> I would love to cancel the cable altogether, but I like a couple
>>> programs on comedy central and sci-fi.
>>>       
>> Vote with your wallet and cancel cable and go with OTA.  And, if you can
>> convince a few million of your closest friends to do the same (and they
>> can convince...), we might actually fix the real problem (the
>> cable-/satellite-company DRM infection).***
>>
>> Then, cut out the middle man (the cable co) and spend that $90/mo (or
>> whatever) on buying the TV shows on DVD or Blu-Ray.
>>
>> ***And, no, canceling cable and stealing programming from the Internet
>> will /not/ fix the problem--after all, winning the war will require
>> honor and sacrifices.  :)  (Not that I'm saying you planned to do so.
>> I'm only making this statement in a general context.)
>>     
> There are several sources on the net that are legal and not "stealing", or at 
> least I thought there were.
>
> Is Hulu, Cackle, cbs.com, Netflix Watch Instantly et al "stealing"? I'm pretty 
> sure at least Netflix is legal, at least I pay for it. I try to be legal, but 
> I suspect nobody really knows what all those licenses really say or mean.
>   

I don't know what Cackle is, but the others are legal and using them 
according to their terms of service would be fine.  Again, I was just 
making a general statement that stealing/downloading pirated copies 
isn't the answer.

> I'd love to see Myth support Netflix, but I doubt it will happen. I haven't 
> figured out how to do it without a Windows machine (albeit virtual) or 
> proprietary hardware. I mean watching the streams, not the queue manipulation 
> that Myth can do now.

Yeah, pretty sure this can never happen.  AIUI, Netflix Watch Instantly 
uses DRMed VC-1 video streams and closed-source decryption.  And, while 
it's possible that someone may crack the encryption, doing so would 
almost definitely be a violation of ToS at minimum and/or the DMCA or 
other laws.  If so, Myth wouldn't include the cracked Watch Instantly 
capability.

Mike